The Art and Science of Journaling: A Path to Self-Discovery and Well-being

This episode was inspired by a book from my childhood that I spotted on the shelf of banned books. The one sure way to make sure that a book gets read and remembered - just put in on the "banned book list". 

Harriet the Spy - has once again led me to the transformative power of journaling and how it can lead to self-discovery and enhanced well-being.  This may not exaclty be how it turned out for Harriet, but nonetheless... 

• History of Journaling: Discover the rich history of journaling, from ancient civilizations to its modern-day forms, and how it has evolved over time.
• The Science Behind Journaling: Explore the fascinating scientific reasons why journaling is so effective, including emotional regulation, cognitive processing, stress reduction, and more.
• Five Science-Backed Tips: Learn actionable strategies to maximize the benefits of journaling, including consistency, honesty, focusing on the positive, trying different journaling styles, and the importance of reflection.

 "Journaling is the compass of self-discovery, the ink that transforms thoughts into wisdom, and the mirror reflecting the journey of your soul."

Journaling is a timeless practice that can lead to profound personal growth and self-awareness. Whether you're new to journaling or a seasoned pro, this episode will provide valuable insights and motivation to embark on your journaling journey.

Transcript

0:59

Welcome back. And thanks for joining in. And showing up for yourself really to default to your extraordinary self. And go on this journey with me. I am thrilled. I'm honored that you've joined me here. And today we're going to talk about something else that I want to get more consistent on. I know a couple of weeks ago I talked about fasting. And Thank you for those of you who have asked me how it's going and it's going really well. I'm feeling great and still staying consistent. And that's the beauty of accountability. So today we're going to talk about the art and science of journaling. This is a path to self discovery and wellbeing, and we're taking journaling really with fasting and my relationship with food I've really been. Discovering a lot about the physiological. We talk about the mindset and the psychological aspects of a lot of these things. And the relationship with food is like that and really getting into what the body is doing. On a chemical basis. Neuro-transmitters micro-biome. All of those things that derive our thought life, our mindset. And physiologically. Tuning into that. We have control over all of that. And I'm really having a good time discovering this. As we dive into some of the science behind some of the things that we're told, or we know these are good things that we should be doing or could be doing. Maybe we have intention to where we may, we know somebody who practices this and we admire that and we want to incorporate it. We really haven't discovered the value for ourselves personally. And this is where for me, the science comes in. When we start to learn really the value and the benefits. That come with some of these practices. We begin to discover how it aligns with our personal goals or our personal values. And that's when we can really establish healthy habits. Healthy. Rituals and routines. And maybe we'll talk about that too. The distinction between the three of those. But today we're going to dive into the art and science of journaling. As the path of self discovery and wellbeing. I actually used to journal when I was younger. Very consistently. I don't know what what took me away from that, but regardless I stopped journaling consistently. I went to bullet pointing and since then, it's just decreased. So every once in a while I'll journal something out. when I need to process it. But it hasn't been a consistent practice. So I wanted to see if I couldn't tap into How journaling as a practice would align with my values or with my goals. Making it something that I would want to do and then experience the benefits. Journaling is a practice that's deeply rooted in human history. It can be tracked back to ancient civilizations. Where people use various forms of written or visual records to document their thoughts and experiences and observations. I think we can all agree that it was really important that they do that. And we probably would've liked some more so that we could learn from that. the word journal itself is derived from a French term, That means a daily record of events. Throughout the centuries. Journaling has evolved from diary keeping to a versatile tool of self-reflection. Personal growth. And even scientific research. I can't hardly think about journaling without thinking of one of my favorite books as a kid with Harriet, the spy. And if you haven't read that it is now on the list of banned books. Go figure. But Harriet kept a journal and she would record all of these events and it was just entertaining and took a, more of a detective aspect. And I really liked that. So I think that's that curiosity that was in me, even as a kid. That's what drew me into journaling and keeping a diary. Like I said, I did that very consistently all growing up and it wasn't really until, probably until I had kids. I started keeping a journal about parenting and for my kids and I stopped writing. As much for myself anyway, the science behind journaling. Over the years, research has shed light on the cognitive, emotional and psychological benefits of journaling. There are a lot of studies that have explored the therapeutic effects of keeping a journal, both in traditional handwritten forums and digital platforms. let's talk about some of those benefits that, that these research projects have Brought forward. first emotional regulation when you journal, you engage in what psychologists call. An affective labeling. This process involves identifying and labeling your emotions, which activates the brain's prefrontal cortex. that's the area that's responsible for those executive functions like decision-making and emotional regulation. By articulating feelings in writing you gain a better control over them. Reducing their emotional intensity and improving your emotional wellbeing. And this enhances the next benefit, which is cognitive processing. Journaling allows you to process and make sense of complex thoughts and emotions. the act of writing requires structured thinking, which can help you analyze your experiences more objectively. This cognitive process aids in problem-solving decision-making and gaining insights into your own thought patterns. So it's less about journaling as being a creative expression or a way to put thoughts. And you think of a more poetic expression of your thoughts, but it's really not that it's really a tool for cognitive processing. This is also an extension of coaching. A lot of times when my clients are really stuck on being able to identify that thought, and we are struggling with the thought model, I'll encourage them to journal throughout the week so that they can identify what thoughts are coming up that are bringing forward. These emotions that they're then acting on and getting outcomes that they maybe don't want. And so it's all a way we reverse engineer that to get the outcome we want. We have to back up and change some of the sets. We can't do that unless we can effectively identify them. Journaling is helpful for that. A third benefit of stress reduction. Chronic stress can have detrimental effects on our physical and mental health and writing about stressful experiences can reduce that physiological response to stress. By lowering cortisol levels. Then in turn can lead to decreased anxiety and improved overall wellbeing. So stress reduction. If you're dealing with stress every day. Think about how you might incorporate journaling as a way to reduce that stress. Another benefit of self-awareness. Journaling also encourages that self awareness by prompting you to reflect on your thoughts, behaviors, and experiences. So many times we go through our days and we can go days or weeks or months and not really processed and not maybe noticing some of the thoughts that are driving our behaviors. Behaviors may be that we are trying to change are being driven by. Some thoughts that we might not even be aware that we are acting on. So self-awareness is a cornerstone of personal growth and development. As you can imagine, allowing you to better understand your values, goals, and motivations. And if you have never clarified your values in an effort to maybe even understand what your goals are, because we all have goals, we just don't all write them down. We don't all work towards them the way in an intentional fashion, but we really do all have goals. We have something that we want. And maybe just haven't gotten real intentional on how we will actually get there. That leads us to goal achievement. journaling is really effective to help us achieve our goals. Research shows that when we write down our goals, we activate the brain's reticular activating system. That's the process that prioritizes information related to your goals, making you more attentive to opportunities and resources that align with them. And journaling helps us set those clear intentions and stay focused on what our real objectives are instead of drifting, maybe to where we want to be. I have mentioned several practices that I had that were very effective for me, that. That I lapsed in. And that's how is when we aren't clear on our intentions and we don't stay focused on our objectives. We can drift to a place that we don't necessarily mean to be. And now we're carrying around extra weight, out of shape overweight. I have been never taken the trip that we intended to take, not traveling the way we'd hoped. Maybe we have unfinished degrees or certifications. Perhaps being stuck in a job that isn't a good fit, or we just don't like. Having put up with. Chronic stress and now paying the price With high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease. joint problems, chronic pain. All the places that we can drift. If we're not intentional. About where we really want to be. And all of these things are the reason why. Why people. And all of these things are the reason why I became a coach. This is what people reach out to me for. And I'm no stranger to this, personally, as well. It's what took me on this journey in the first place. Several years back now, I experienced a very profound burnout and really forced me to take a look at my health and where I was going. Where I was at the time where I was going and I wasn't being intentional about a lot of buy where I really wanted to be. I was letting that slip. I was focusing on so many other things that it just really wasn't paying attention to some of the, the health habits and some of the things that were causing me to drift into a place that I certainly didn't intend to be. Knowing Mary's story. That seemed like a good place Stick in what she had to share with me, about what it looks like when she defaults to yes, Mary is a nurse. a certified health and wellness coach, a certified Roma therapist, and a Reiki practitioner. And you can follow her at nurse Mary dot PRN on Instagram. Another. Benefit that the research highlights is memory enhancement. Writing about our experiences and events can improve memory consolidation. It solidifies your memories and allows you to revisit and learn from the past experiences more effectively. I know this is something that they pay attention to on crime scenes. This is something in the workplace to look at all of the different perspectives and to document things really well is important for on down the road. This happened in my family during a canoe trip, particularly a traumatic experience for me. As I was pregnant with my first child and it really marked my first encounter with real fear. What struck us all with the variation in our individual accounts of the day, my memory omitted, many of the details that others remembered vividly. It's fascinating how our perceptions of the event can differ. Even when we're convinced that our recollection is accurate. I can even see things I have a mental picture of things. That the others present don't remember at all. So I have come to a different conclusion about, say canoeing than I would have Had my mind remembered the whole picture. It just highlights the complexity of memory and the potential for divergence and Our memories of shared experiences. As we journal it helps solidify the memories and allows us to revisit and learn from past experiences more effectively. This can be particularly beneficial when we're reflecting on both positive and negative experiences. ruminating on the past can lead us straight into burnout when we're looking at things that when we continue to visit in our minds the mistakes or regrets. Or things that we build up fear over things that we don't want to repeat That ruminating on past events can be very stressful and can lead us straight into burnout. So journaling can help us go back to those things and remember them more appropriately and process them. And positive experiences too, to be able to celebrate and to learn and to see what went right in Circumstances or in relationships. That we can learn from and And repeat. This also decreases our stress levels. And so that's what happens when we actually solidify those memories in a way that allows us to revisit and learn from those past experiences. A little more effectively. So who knows? Maybe I'll go canoeing again one day. That's where the experience of learning, how I was processing that incorrectly. All right. So another benefit that comes up in research is that emotional release. Journaling provides a safe space to express and release some of those pet up emotions. Bottling up emotions can lead to psychological distress and journaling offers an outlet for processing and letting go of those emotions. If you have a difficult relationship, A difficult conversation, a conflict. We think we can just move on. We'll just let it go. A lot of times what we're actually doing is bottling those emotions up. So journaling can help us process those in a more healthy way. another thing that comes up a lot in the research is gratitude. Journaling. It's a specific form of journaling that has been extensively studied It's linked to that increased feeling of wellbeing and happiness. It encourages us to focus on positive aspects of life, fostering a little more. Optimistic outlook. So while it might be helpful to get some of that sarcasm or hurt or snark out on a piece of paper and see how you're really feeling what you're thoughts are. It's also helpful for fostering a more optimistic outlook when you combine it with a practice of. Gratitude journaling. Alright problem solving, writing about our challenges and dilemmas can help you approach. The more effectively. that's just a process of externalizing, your thoughts, bringing it out in the open, see that you could view them from different angles, generate potential solutions. And make more informed decisions. My son is beginning his journey as, as an educator. he was getting ready to start his first semester teaching a creative writing class. And he was explaining to us one of the exercises he was going to do with his new students. And it's called the Drawbridge exercise. And then the exercise presents a story to the students and then asks them To evaluate the characters and list and rank the characters. In their order of responsibility for let's say the crime. This asks the group members to evaluate and to consider the other perspectives. to really analyze the emotional journeys, the interpersonal dynamics and the various. influence of the different characters and their impact on the storyline. How amazing would it be for us to always have that mindset, to be able to just to look around all that, all of the different angles of the story that we are, the story that we are in or the story that we are living. The story that we are telling ourselves. My coach has taken me through exercises doing just that. Viewing and asking good questions about the perspective of others can be really helpful. In identifying a possible solution and identifying again, we can't always believe what we think. And sometimes we tell stories that aren't true. And so journaling is another way that you can direct that on your own. If you don't have a coach. All right. So how to make, how do we make journaling most effective and something that we might actually do? To maximize the benefits of journaling, I'm going to suggest a couple strategies, but I'm also going to say, do what works for you. Bullet point. Electronic. Write it on paper. However it works to just start to externalize some of those thoughts and process them through tapping, like you're tapping on your keyboard or through writing on a piece of paper. You could even record your journals. So you could, do a voice recording and just process that, listen to it back. There are lots of ways that you can figure out. D to do something on any level that works for you. It doesn't have to, you don't have to start out by writing pages and pages. All right. So to maximize the benefits of journaling consider first of all, consistency. I set aside some dedicated time each day or week to journal, it could even be a monthly thing. However, you will do it. The consistency allows us to establish that routine and fully. start to discover the rewards of the practice that we see in some of the research. So the second strategy is be honest and open in your journal entries. Authenticity is key to gaining insights and resolving emotional challenges. So this isn't a creative writing experience. It's not for other people to read. It is really to just be honest and open and authentic with yourself and to get at what your thought processes are. Focus on being positive. While addressing negative emotions is important and it can be funny when you get on a snarky or sarcastic rant in your journal. don't forget to write about the positive experiences and gratitude. This will promote a more balanced perspective and allow you to get at what is really true. Now experiment with different styles. Again, explore those. Styles. I gratitude journaling, dream journals, a stream of consciousness where you just write whatever comes to your mind. That's probably the easiest way to get started. I've found is that stream of consciousness just brain dump on a piece of paper. That can be very therapeutic. Drop the perfectionism. you do not have to write complete sentences. this is not for the eyes of others. This is not about your creative writing, that other people are going to see. You don't have to spell things correctly. Your sentence structure doesn't have to be recognizable, even just brain dump on a piece of paper. The idea, here is find the approach that resonates with you the most. All right. the other. Thing to do, the way to bring it all together is to periodically review your journal entries. To identify patterns and track your progress to reflect your personal growth journey. I've looked back on my journaling. And I see that I can see patterns that develop so that I can develop rituals around that, to turn that around for myself, for example. I know that if I work three days in a row, That my gratitude begins to become, I'm grateful for my cup of coffee. I'm grateful for. my wild orange essential oil. I could see myself struggling with coming up with three things that I'm grateful for by the end of that time. So what I know is that on my work days, I need to build in some more gratitude practice into my morning rituals. I need to be consistent with, I set an alarm on my phone so that twice during the day a message comes up That helps me focus on. Being intentional and being grateful. That flows into the days that I'm off my recovery time from maybe. Three-day stretch of work. My recovery time is less. If I keep my mindset consistent and my energy levels up. So that reflective aspect of journaling is really crucial for long-term development and to make journaling, more effective. All right. to wrap things up. Journaling is a centuries old practice that has gained scientific recognition for its numerous benefits. So whether you're seeking emotional relief, personal growth, or improve physical health, keeping a journal can be a powerful tool on your journey to self discovery and wellbeing. by following these science backed tips and making journaling a consistent part of our lives, we can Unlock its full potential. And we can enjoy the benefits that science brings forward. So I invite you to go on this journaling journey with me today and discover the transformative power of putting pen to paper or fingers to keyboard. If you have a thriving journaling practice, I'd love to hear about that too. Thank you for joining me on this little exploration of the significance of journaling. I know that doing a little more research into the science and really considering the benefits has helped me to value the art of journaling more. And making it more consistent practice. Remember journaling is the compass of self-discovery. It's the ink that transforms thoughts into wisdom. And it's the mirror reflecting the journey of your soul. If you enjoyed this episode, don't keep it to yourself. Share it with your friends, family, and anyone who you think might benefit from the power of journaling or the other, some of the other tips that we've talked about on here. And be sure to get on my mailing list, to stay updated for more tips and inspiring content. I do share some bonuses along the way. And that's also where you will get every episode sent to you. the link to join that list is in the show notes below. So scroll down, click that link. And get on the list. I'd love to hear from you too. and getting on that list Is a great way for us to connect. Until next time, remember that every journal entry is a step. Towards saying yes to the endless possibilities that journaling can unlock. As you get up every day, a default to, yes. Your extraordinary self.